This question alone is usually enough to get even the most sedate politically apathetic person fired up, and happy to voice their views on the subject.
Very rarely will you hear anyone say that they don’t have an opinion on the matter or really care one way or the other, with people being either for or against the idea.
There are those who believe that the time has now come for Australia to cut ties with the United Kingdom and take it’s rightful place on the world stage as an independent sovereign nation.
Whilst those on the other side of the fence support our current system believing that there is no need to ‘fix’ that which is not broken. Asserting that it has served us well in the past, and will see us through into the future.
Can either side claim to be right in this discussion, and if so, which one?
In this two part post, I will discuss the arguments and reasons put forward by both sides, starting with the pro-Republic side.
Australia isn’t an independent nation without becoming a republic.
This is statement couldn’t be further from the truth, because Australia became an independent nation on any one of the three dates listed below.
10 Jan 1920 – As a member state of the League of Nations.
Article X of the Covenant of The League of Nations guarantees soveriegn nation status when it became part of international law
26 Jun 1945 – As a Member State of the United Nations Organisation.
Soveriegn Nation status guarenteed by Article 2 Paragraphs 1 and 4 of the Charter of The United Nations, when it became part of international law.
03 Mar 1986 – The day the Australia Act 1986 came into operation.
The long title of the Act states:
An Act to bring constitutional arrangements affecting the Commonwealth and the States into conformity with the status of the Commonwealth of Australia as a sovereign, independent and federal nation
We need to have an Australian Head Of State.
The Royal Styles and Titles Act 1973 created the title of Queen of Australia for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, removing future references to Queen of the United Kingdom. This has effectively given us an Australian Head of State.
Those in favour of a republic like to tease supporters by saying that once Australia becomes a republic, then any Australian can aspire to have the highest position in the country. Unfortunately, with the position being chosen by politicians, unless your family is stacked with them, I don’t like your chances.
With the most common arguments in favour of Australia becoming a Republic having been shown to be untrue and misleading, why would you want to vote in favour of a new defining document that they want to create?
You also might like...
This post was written by...
Cameron Blewett – who has written 129 posts on Cameron Blewett's place in cyber space.
Cameron is a prolific blogger with a number of sites relating to different subject matters. Along with being passionate about politics, his main goal for this site is to offer a different perspective on the news of the day, reporting on matters that really matter to those of us who live in the "real world". His new site VeganSexual.com.au aims to challenge the common held misconceptions of being male and vegan. Cameron can also be found on Facebook or Google+. Remember to sign up to Cameron's weekly newsletter, where you will be kept up to date with the weeks posts, allowing you to read any any post you may have missed by clicking here.
{ 0 comments… add one now }
{ 1 trackback }